The present disclosure relates to cold forming machines employing reciprocal dies to form a pattern on a cylindrical blank rotating about a fixed axis. More particularly, it relates to such machines having multiple blank feeding stations.
Cold forming machines utilizing reciprocal dies to pattern a cylindrical blank rotating about a fixed axis have recently evolved to take advantage of modern machine technology. The advent of servo-motors, belt drives, light weight slides with re-circulating bearings, and computer-based controls have made such machines a reality. The present invention presents refinements and advances to provide commercially viable technology as a competitive alternative to traditional cold forming equipment. Though illustrated here in the context of cold rolled thread forming, such equipment is suitable for any similar application, including forming toothed gears or the like.
PCT Publication WO 2014/151132 A2 reflects the leading edge in this technology. The content of that disclosure, including specification, claims and drawings is hereby incorporated by reference in this application as if fully set forth herein.
Advances disclosed in this application involve refinements advantageous to a multiple station configuration. They involve blank feeding, stroke length optimization, use of different die sizes, longitudinal die spacing, and preset modular forming elements, as well as mechanism for transverse die clearance adjustment. These improvements are best understood in reference to the embodiments described below and illustrated in the accompanying drawings.